Jess Walsh (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak about the stain on our nation and our soul that is family violence. We promised before the election that we would make women's safety a national priority, and we have. Last year, one of the first pieces of legislation we introduced was on paid family and domestic violence leave. I'm proud to say that, as of 1 February, this leave is now available for millions of Australians to access. Make no mistake: this will save lives.

Australian workers—full time, part time and casual—will have access to 10 days of paid domestic and family violence leave a year, no matter how many hours they work. The full 10 days will be available when it's needed rather than having to be accumulated over time like annual leave and sick leave. This will make a huge difference in the lives of many Australian workers who are affected by family violence. There are rules to keep information about whether an employee is taking domestic and family violence private rather than having to be included on a pay slip. Importantly, casual workers will be paid at the full-time rate for the hours they were rostered on to work.

So what can this leave be used for? It's to help all employees do whatever they need to to keep themselves and their families safe. This may include making arrangements for their safety or the safety of loved ones, attending court hearings, dealing with the police, attending counselling or meeting with medical, financial or legal professionals.

We know that the most dangerous time for a woman is when she attempts to leave an abusive relationship, which is why being able to access this leave is so crucial to women's safety. No-one should ever have to choose between their safety and their pay.

I want to acknowledge the work of activists over many years to make this a reality. This landmark legislation started with strong union women standing up and speaking out in their workplaces for safety and security. This is a change that was years in the making, and it is thanks to campaigning from survivors, frontline workers and the union movement.

Last year, I had the opportunity to meet with some of the pioneering ASU women in Geelong, who were the first to negotiate domestic violence leave in their agreements. Standing together, these women became the first in the country to have paid family and domestic violence leave. This win set off a national campaign which ran for over a decade, culminating in the change that we now see. I really hope that Kristy, Sharon, Harriet and Adele are just so proud of what they've achieved. I know I am so proud of them.

This is a landmark reform, and it's just one of the parts of the Albanese government's commitment to ending family violence. Everyone deserves to feel safe in their own homes, around people that they love the most, and that's why we're delivering the new National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children. We're funding hundreds of new frontline workers, including in rural, regional and remote areas. We're delivering 4,000 social housing dwellings for women and children escaping violence. We're funding consent and respectful relationships education to help stop violence before it starts. And we're implementing all 55 recommendations of the Respect@Work report, including a requirement for employers to actively prevent sexual harassment in Australian workplaces. All of this reform is not easy, but it's the right thing to do and it will save lives. We know that, regardless of your background, family violence can happen to anyone and it can happen anywhere in our country. Most importantly, we know that family violence is preventable. Legislative reform like this, along with our record investment, is just part of our commitment to making women's safety a national priority.

I want to finish by acknowledging some of the incredible frontline workers in the family violence field for the work that they do, every day and every night, helping those who need them the most. I'd also like to acknowledge those who are no longer with us—women who have lost their lives to family violence. We won't stop until every woman feels safe in her home, and this work is for those women.